


It's Quiet Out In Space

by Dogstar



Category: Transformers Generation One
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-12-21
Updated: 2011-12-21
Packaged: 2017-10-27 17:17:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 685
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/298175
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dogstar/pseuds/Dogstar
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Who better to learn from, than someone designed for it? The Aerialbots' first time in space. Written for the 2011 TF Speedwriting Advent Calendar, 12/21/2011</p>
            </blockquote>





	It's Quiet Out In Space

**Author's Note:**

  * For [VideEtCredere](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=VideEtCredere).



Their alt modes were not designed for space; and the first time they had followed Skyfire up into the frigid air of the upper atmosphere, it had been a shock. They laughed, darting around him and flying just badly enough that Silverbolt felt compelled to try and keep them in line, and if it had the side effect of distracting him from his fear, well, Slingshot would never tell him that was why. The air was so thin that they could no longer feel it rushing over their wings, and suddenly, it was gone altogether.

"If you were really an earth jet, you wouldn't be able to fly here." Skyfire said "But just because you look like one, doesn't mean you are." And sure enough, their propulsion systems still worked. Fireflight had a near miss with a satellite, and learning to control their momentum and use the gravity of larger objects to build their speed in parabolic arcs took some experimenting. But that was why Skyfire had brought them along- who better to teach a group the intricacies of space travel than the one made for it, after all?

It took distance to truly understand what Skyfire was trying to teach them in their struts and engines, instead of just in their processors, coming off a loop around the moon to shoot past Mars, nearly in conjunction with Earth, and on past into the asteroid belt. They stopped there to play with Skyfire's amused tolerance, Slingshot and Air Raid playing target-lock-tag (Fireflight had been distracted by Skydive on purpose, Skyfire had no interest in hauling him all the way back to earth after a collision) in the field of debris, the light from their engines dancing against the amazing darkness of space while Skyfire and Silverbolt watched, hanging back above, far enough out that the dueling Aerialbots were easier to see on their long range sensors rather than with their visual receptors.

"That game only works if you've got their kind of manuverability." Skyfire said with a fair degree of amusement. Silverbolt's manuverability exceeded that of any earth-built Concorde, but he was still limited in some things by his size and greater turning radius, and Skyfire's sheer size compounded the same problem. Silverbolt laughed over the comm, pausing at the hint of sadness that seeped through Skyfire's field.

"Are you alright?" He asked after a moment. It was always awkward; Skyfire was so much his senior and such a private person that questions about him personally and not about a mission or flying in general were just difficult. All the Aerialbots had heard the story of how Skyfire joined the Autobots. Only Air Raid had ever asked him about his life before that, and the expression on Skyfire's face had been so blank and cold that Silverbolt had dragged him off before the shuttle could reply, and made it an order that no one would ask again.

"Starscream used to play in asteroid fields like this. He liked the challenge- it was good training, he said, for missions when someone might actually shoot at him." Skyfire said, after a long moment of silence.

"I'm sorry." Silverbolt said. "We can go, really- they don't mean to upset you or anything, and I'm sure you've got more important things to be doing after this than watching my brothers goof around up here." Below them, Slingshot apparently got frustrated and resorted to underpowered lasers rather than just trying to get a target lock on his brother.

"I'll deal with it," Skydive commed before Silverbolt could even react. "Fireflight, stay with Bolt." The black jet dove from where he and Firefilght had been looping a large asteroid on the edge of the field; Fireflight came off the edge of it to drift towards Silverbolt and Skyfire.

"Are we going back?" Fireflight asked. Silverbolt waited for Skyfire to answer.

"Once they're done. They're having too much fun to interrupt. And you two are good company while we wait." Skyfire replied. Further away, Fireflight couldn't feel the feeling of appreciation that Skyfire pulsed through his EM field to brush against Silverbolt's.


End file.
